Archive By Author - Kim Van Meter

There were plenty of illegal fireworks bursting in the air Saturday night, July 4 - and a few fires as a result, one of which burned 11 acres at Duck Cove at Woodward Reservoir - but while several illegal fireworks were confiscated, no citations were given within the City of Oakdale, said officials.

A group of six community members enrolled in the Leadership course sponsored by the Oakdale Chamber of Commerce took a day to get an up-close and personal view of the issues inherent to public safety by spending a day with the police department, Thursday, June 25.

Support your local Oakdale Gator swim team and take your family out to an evening at the movies by buying presale movie night fundraiser tickets for Ice Age 3 and Transformers 2, showing Thursday, July 9 at the Oakdale Theater. Tickets are $7 and they must be purchased in advance.

Jeff Steves, part of the Steves family who owns Steves Chevrolet, admits in the wake of the General Motors Chapter 11 tsunami, there were some sleepless nights caused by fear for the future of the locally-owned and operated dealership.

Sunshine gave Justin Krum the raw material he needed to succeed but it was his drive and ambition that turned the 28-year-old Oakdale native into a captain of the solar industry with his company, 1st Light Energy, which since 2004 has opened offices nationwide and shows no signs of slowing down its expansion.

The 17th annual Oakdale Chocolate Festival saw record heat on Sunday, May 17 with temperatures hitting 107 and sending many scurrying for the misters or any spot of shade but in spite of the heat, 43,000 people spent at least part of their weekend in Oakdale, sampling chocolate and perusing vendor booths.

The local Rotary clubs, Oakdale and Sunrise, have teamed up again, only this time they're offering a chance to get in on the "Vacation of a Lifetime" fundraiser aimed at raising funds to purchase an Open Air Cinema for the community.

More than 1,100 citizens of Oakdale - and counting - have signed a petition calling for the replacement of Police Chief Marty West as the threat of losing cops becomes more real and discontent continues to fester among the ranks of the police department, according to Joseph Parreira, Oakdale Police Officer Association President.